One of us visited El Paso, Texas over Memorial Day weekend. El Paso is home to UTEP (University of Texas El Paso) which is notable for its Himalayan architecture. The story is that Kathleen Worrell, wife of the school’s first dean Stephen H. Worrell, had seen pictures of Bhutanese buildings in
National Geographic. Noting the similarity of mountainous Bhutan (which is in the Himalayas) to the location of the campus, she suggested that the new buildings be in the style of Bhutanese
dzongs (monastic fortresses), with massive sloping walls and overhanging roofs. Prominent El Paso architect Henry Trost designed the first four buildings in 1917. All buildings since then have followed this style, including a fifth by Trost in 1920, and three more by his firm in 1933-1937. While the early structures only copied the general appearance of a
dzong, recent buildings incorporate internal elements of the
dzong form as well.
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| UTEP College of Business & College of Engineering |
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| Trongsa Dzong in Bhutan |
